Should people become vegetarian?

One of the most debatable topics of our time, the question of should people become vegetarian has led to various intense debates with rabid supporters on each side. Vegetarians claim that killing animals for meat is unethical and not needed, while others claim that eating meat is completely natural and right. So, the question remains, what should people do?

The biggest reason most people are vegetarian is that they think that the killing of animals is inhumane and unethical. This is because around 56 billion animals are killed each year or about 150 million a day. Not only are the animals killed in huge amounts, but there are also many cases in which the animals are cruelly killed. On the flip side, without the death of animals, many products that people use every day would be gone. For example, soap, shampoo, waxes, plastic, and etc. would not be available without the components that are needed from animals. Also, all the food that people eat, comes with the price of the deaths of millions of animals who were killed in order to make space and protect crops.

Another reason people become vegetarian is that they believe that a vegan diet is a healthy one. This can be true in the fact that one can reduce the risk of illnesses and chronic diseases, but a vegetarian diet can be harmful as well. Vegetarian diets often lack certain nutrients that are essential to the human body. However, eating meat provides people with those much-needed nutrients and proteins. Nutrients such as vitamin A, vitamin D, B-complex, small amounts of fatty acids, magnesium, zinc, phosphorous, iron, taurine, potassium, and selenium are plentiful in meat products such as beef, lamb, pork, fish, and etc. It is possible for vegetarians to make up these nutrients by eating vitamins and other nutrient-laden food, but it can be easier and healthier just to get these nutrients by eating meat.

Protecting the environment is also another big, common factor in why people chose to become vegetarian. Raising livestock can be very harmful to the environment as it takes a lot of land, water, and food to keep the meat business going. For example, the number of fish in the ocean is slowly but surely decreasing as more and more fish are being caught for fish meal, a food commonly fed to livestock. On the other hand, livestock can also eat food such as grass which reduces the actual harm done to the environment. Also, one can afford to buy and eat meat without completely killing the environment. It is what society does as a whole that matters.

All in all, the topic of becoming vegetarian is truly a tough, debatable one with many great pros and cons to each side. It is sure to remain opinion based and without a clear answer for the foreseeable future. But to me, I want to continue eating meat, because I believe the positives outweigh the negatives.